Week 3

Devery Henderson (NO) was benched last Sunday, he had 3 targets and 3 drops, including one that would have been a touchdown. Now he could be replaced in the lineup. – RookieDwayne Bowe (KC) is expected to remain a starter afterEddie Kennison returns from injury. Most likely atSamie Parker’s expense. –TJ Houshmandzadeh (Cin) skipped practice on Wednesday but he did the previous week also. –Lee Evans (Buf) is going to be moved around more to try and get some better matchups and free him up. –Reche Caldwell (Was) is expected to start challenging for playing time during practice over the next week. –Andre Johnson (Hou) has declared himself out this week.

Injury Watch:

This list is of injuries reported throughout the week during practice, some teams did not report and player status will be determined when the official injury report is released on Friday.

Sea vs Cin: Cincinnati is ranked 6th worst against receivers fantasy wise. They also gave up more yards on the ground than any other team last week. They have 7 injuries on defense that are starting to add up. They got no pressure on the QB last week. Cincinnati will put up some points and Seattle will have to keep up with them in what could be a shootout.Matt Hasselbeck looked much better last week. Both receiver groups should be good plays this week.

Was vs NYG: The Giants have one of the worst, if not the worst secondary in the league. That being said, they ranked 5th worst against the receiver position in week 1 and they remain at 5th worst after week 2. They madeBrett Favre look 10 years younger and Jason Campbell played better against Philadelphia last week than Favre did against Philly in week 1.

Oak vs Cle: Cleveland is the worst group against receivers fantasy wise. They have given up 31 receptions (4th most), 461 yards (2nd most) and 7 touchdowns (1st most) to receivers this year. Cleveland has 3 defensive backfield players hampered by injuries this week. Oakland put up decent numbers against Detroit in week 1 and should match or exceed that this week against Cleveland.

Unfavorable Matchups:

Jac @ Den: Denver is 2nd best against the receivers fantasy wise. They have only allowed 12 receptions, 123 yards and one touchdown to the receiver position. The number 1 ranked team against receivers fantasy wise, is Jacksonville. They have only allowed 12 receptions, 174 yards and no touchdowns. This game could go more on the ground than thru the air, so lower your expectations.

SD @ GB: Green Bay is ranked in the middle at 15th best against receivers fantasy wise. Their defense as a unit is underated. San Diego’s receivers as a group only have 10 receptions, 115 yards and no touchdowns, ranking them as the worst group in the league fantasy wise. San Diego had 2 tough games to start and it should not get easier in Lambeau.

Dal @ Chi: Chicago is ranked 3rd best against receivers fantasy wise. Chicago has only allowed 14 receptions, 144 yards and one touchdown to the receiver position. They have only allowed an average of 272 total yards of offense thru 2 games. Dallas had matchups against 2 below average defenses the first 2 games and have not gone up against a defense of this caliber yet and they’re on the road, so lower your expectations.

Watchlist:

Players that may be available or are worth monitoring

Vets

These guys all have been in the same system for a few years. They have good quarterback play. They will be consistent, not spectacular, and could have some above average games when the matchup is right.

Derrick Mason – Bal: Has been targeted 24 times, 12 times in each game. Mark Clayton is not stepping up yet and Mason has entrenched himself as the 1st option of the group.

Isaac Bruce – StL: Has been targeted 22 times thru 2 games. He’ll have below average games and above average games but he isn’t in danger of being pushed out of a starting role.

Amani Toomer – NYG: Has been targeted 16 times thru 2 games. He’ll also have above average and below average games and isn’t in danger of being pushed out of a starting role.

Bobby Engram – Sea: Has only been targeted 10 times thru 2 games but his targets more than doubled last week with DJ Hackett out and has produced consistently in that role in the past.

Young Bucks

These guys have been in the league 5 years or less. They should be monitored for now unless your’e desperate. So far they have produced with limited opportunity. They could surprise with more playing time or better quarterback play and the right matchups.

Arnaz Battle – SF: He has been targeted 13 times and has 7 rcpts, 77 yrds and no touchdowns. Week 1 he was targeted more than Darrell Jackson. Last week SF was successful on the ground and didn’t go to the air. He suffered a groin injury in the game also. Needs Alex Smith to step up his play.

James Jones – GB: He has been targeted 12 times and has 8 rcpts, 104 yrds and no touchdowns. Was set to be the number 3 wideout until Greg Jennings went down and he’s had to start in his place and might just keep the role. He’s a rookie but this kid has great hands and Favre has taken a liking to him.

Jason Avant – Phi: He actually leads the team in receptions – 8, yards – 109 and has the only touchdown reception to the receiver position. He has been targeted 9 times with 8 receptions for a 89% target to reception ratio.

Roscoe Parrish – Buf: If you receive points for return yardage then this guy could be huge. He needs more playing time and better quarterback play. Should be starting over Josh Reed.

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